In PHOTOS: Europe, US cool off the summer heat

Europe, US cool off the summer heat

The Northern Hemisphere is sizzling like an ant under a magnifying glass.

Europe is sweltering in heat, with temperatures staying over 30 degrees Celsius in Hungary, Italy and Bulgaria. Hungarian capital Budapest broke the country's heat record this year. In Russia's Far East, firefighters are still battling over 26 forest fires.

Elsewhere in United States, 13 people have died so far in the heat wave. According to weather forecasters, the heat wave will reach Washington and New York in the next few days, with air temperatures rising over 40 degrees Celsius.

Meanwhile, people residing in the northern hemisphere are finding ways to cool off.

Take the case of this woman, who preferred to take a plunge in Lake Balaton near Tihany 150 km west of Budapest to escape the heat.

Europe, US cool off the summer heat

Image: Makayla Martin, 9, cools off at a fire hydrant in St Louis, Missouri, US. The area has been under a heat advisory as temperatures hit 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius)Photographs: Sarah Conard/Reuters

Europe, US cool off the summer heat

Europe, US cool off the summer heat

Image: Biker Jordan Richardson seeks relief from high temperatures near Lake Calhoun in Minneapolis, US. A heat wave with oppressive temperatures and stifling humidity lingered and intensified in the midsection of the country and was expected to expand eastward as the week continuedPhotographs: Eric Miller/Reuters